Some of us are willing to admit our traumas, while most are unaware. Our understanding and dealing with traumatic experiences is. Over time, experts discovered that people showed identical PTSD symptoms in other areas of life, far from the battlefields: domestic violence, toxic workplace environments, bullying in schools, child raising to romantic relationships. Suddenly, the human brain was like a stranger in our house. They realized while humans have ostensibly evolved in terms of skills and intellect shaping economies and technologies, we remain in the dark when it comes to what influenced, affected, hindered and destroyed the inner workings of the human brain. Post-World War II was a turning point for doctors as they grew fascinated with the human brain. Initially described as shell-shock, it was later named post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Some were alarming, even leading to death. This happened again after the second world war. They presented unusual and life-threatening behavior that affected the dynamics of relationships with the people around them. Families of the wounded and surviving soldiers felt their loved ones returned as different people. The fascination with trauma began with the soldiers and prisoners who returned from battlefields after World War I.

Mention trauma and immediately, thoughts of war, molestation, rape and accidents come to mind. No one else, it seems, in whatever form, shape or size, can make you happy other than yourself (an insight that may kick in later in life). You repeated obvious mistakes, gravitate toward certain type of people. Mid-thirties to forties, you’ve tried a few things but they didn’t work out. If you’re past 25, this book makes sense because by then you’d come to realize what a mess you are, some days worse than others. With mental health and well-being being the soup du jour, this book is the most comprehensive and relevant vehicle available that can help us heal and improve the quality of our lives. If there is one book I’d recommend to everyone (literally, everyone of all walks of life) to read at least once in a lifetime, it is “The Body Keeps The Score, Brain Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma” by Bessel Van Der Kolk (MD). This means feeling free to know what you know and to feel what you feel without becoming overwhelmed, enraged, ashamed, or collapsed.” - The Body Keeps The Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D. The challenge of recovery is to re-establish ownership of your body and your mind - of yourself. “Trauma robs you of the feeling that you are in charge of yourself, of what I will call self-leadership. Photo by Žygimantas Dukauskas on Unsplash

The brain keeps the score